Watch This Neon Sign Master Make His Glowing Art

Twin Cities Public Television's "MN Originals," which "celebrates Minnesota's creative community," just aired an episode featuring an excellent segment (see below) on Matt Thompson, a glassblower who has been making neon signs for 30 years.

The segment shows Thompson explaining his apprenticeship learning the art of glassblowing and neon signage, which, it turns out, is a surprisingly old-fashioned art. The video also includes lots of footage of Thompson carefully heating, bending, and blowing phosphor-coated glass tubes, which (be honest!) is what you're here for. The brilliant colors come from a combination of the phosphorescent coating of the glass and the introduction of neon (or neon mixed with argon and a drop of mercury) into the bent tubes.

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